What TV SHOWS are you watching?

hotseatgames wrote: Strong starts to season 3 of Righteous Gemstones on Max (I don't like saying Max)

and season 2 of The Bear on Hulu.

The Bear, Season 2, Episode "Forks" was the peak of the series for me so far and some of the best TV I've seen in quite awhile. This stunned me since it came immediately after "Fishes" which was amazing in a much more depressing way. Love Richie's character arc this season, and the shift in tone in the series overall, away from the constant chaos of the original restaurant and into dedicated, quieter episodes for each character (excepting Fishes, which was viscerally difficult for me to watch). It creates quite a build up for the grand opening.

Frohike wrote: The Bear, Season 2, Episode "Forks" was the peak of the series for me so far and some of the best TV I've seen in quite awhile.

I just watched Forks, and wow.... that is one of the best episodes of television I have ever seen. Just amazing, and all centered on a character I don't particularly care for... really wonderful stuff.

The Bear is one of those shows you recommend when someone wants something positive, like The Detectorists.

Jackwraith wrote: I liked The Last Kingdom, in general. It wasn't compelling TV, but it was good enough to follow throughout its lifespan. The movie that Netflix recently tacked on to the ending was less than, though. And now you can play it in a board game! www.kickstarter.com/projects/coe/the-las...d-game?ref=user_menu

I also liked TLK quite a bit though over the long course of the series I lost track of many of the sub-characters and which side was what. Plus Uhtred turned into an ageless terminator who NEVER seems to get a moments peace and happiness, even when he is basically fighting for the grandkids of the initial character, give or take.

I did find the last scene of the movie incredibly poignant though, and a FANTASTIC way to pay homage to Uhtreds religious duality, conclude the series, but still leave a bit of a cliffhanger.

Vikings never seem to leave pop culture even if they get molded into 21st century sensibilities. They are the cowboys of modern TV (though I suppose the Western is seeing a bit of a resurgence with Yellowstone).

I started watching the new Witcher episodes. Stupid, pulpy fantasy TV. No real complaints but it ain't winning awards either.

I very rarely watch shows anymore, and when I do, I usually binge watch em. I took the plunge, got a trial subscription to Apple TV and watched Ted Lasso. Great show, and it's not really about a sports team.

WKRP In Cincinnati remains a great show and is a wonderful antidote to the modern predilection of adding mean-spirited or outright cruel elements to otherwise light-hearted entertainment.

It's interesting to see how fully-formed it was right out of the gate. There's no lag as characters develop or as the writing gets better, it features classic episodes right away.

As God is my witness I thought turkeys could fly.

Agree with hotseat and Frohike earlier in the thread. The second season of The Bear was fantastic. It just got better and better as it moved along (the Christmas dinner, Richie and the forks, pretty much every moment Marcus is onscreen.) Not only does it remind me of working in a restaurant and my own fondness for cooking, but the writing and performances have been almost impeccable.

I have fond memories of WKRP from when it originally aired, but found the syndicated reruns annoying in the '90s because of the music problem. They had a license to use those songs on the original episodes but not in subsequent re-runs, let alone new formats like VHS, DVD, or streaming. So they were forced to substitute with lesser music. To make matters worse, the music was actually played in the original scenes, so it wasn't recorded on a separate audio track that could be easily changed.

For similar reasons, the excellent Dead Dog Records storyline from Wiseguy has never been available since it originally aired, though the episodes featured both Debbie Harry (Blondie) and Tim Curry.

My bad, Amazon is now carrying a DVD set of the entire Wiseguy series, and it includes the Dead Dog Record episodes. However, they had to substitute the music. I had forgotten that Mick Fleetwood and Glenn Frey also show up for the Dead Dog story arc.

Shellhead wrote: I have fond memories of WKRP from when it originally aired, but found the syndicated reruns annoying in the '90s because of the music problem. They had a license to use those songs on the original episodes but not in subsequent re-runs, let alone new formats like VHS, DVD, or streaming. So they were forced to substitute with lesser music. To make matters worse, the music was actually played in the original scenes, so it wasn't recorded on a separate audio track that could be easily changed.

For similar reasons, the excellent Dead Dog Records storyline from Wiseguy has never been available since it originally aired, though the episodes featured both Debbie Harry (Blondie) and Tim Curry.

I think MIAMI VICE had similar issues , not sure if it was fixed.

DARIA had this issue too. Great soundtrack of 90s alt-rock. Didn’t foresee streaming.

dysjunct wrote: DARIA had this issue too. Great soundtrack of 90s alt-rock. Didn’t foresee streaming.

Music licensing even causes issues with video games released only 10 years ago. Not so sure it's just a foresight problem.

After an extended malaise, leaving me feeling like the Ecclesiastes of tv and movies, I started re-watching Freaks and Geeks recently. The focus of the show is on a sister and brother and their immediate social circles in high school, circa 1980-1. I was a sophomore in high school at that time, so I am here to testify that this show is possibly the most authentic sitcom to ever air on television. I hate when comedies rely heavily on awkwardness for humor, because I find if more anxiety-inducing than actually funny. Freaks and Geeks applies awkwardness lightly but nearly constantly, offering the illusion that we are really watching something that happened back then. Paradoxically, the awkwardness leads to near perfection, as the disconnect between intentions and results leaves a gap that reveals the characters more fully without resorting to even a moment of exposition.

Relevant to recent posts in this thread, the musical selections for Freaks and Geeks are impeccable, starting with the opening credits blaring out Joan Jett's Bad Reputation. More importantly, this show somehow properly secured the music rights so I am watching the show 23 years later and still hearing all the perfectly selected songs for each scene.

I am only a few episodes in at this point, but as a gamer, I am really looking forward to the episode that features the geeks playing D&d with one of the freaks.

The issue of licensing tracks for streaming causes even more trouble for sample-centric music like hip hop. It took years for De La Soul to become available on Spotify due to lengthy legal complications, and at the end of it all, not every sample could be cleared. If you change the music, is it still the same song?